(CNN) – Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who declined a 2012 run for the White House in April, will throw his weight behind the effort to unseat President Obama by joining fundraising powerhouse American Crossroads and Crossroads GPS.

The groups, helmed by GOP strategist Karl Rove, announced Barbour’s addition Thursday, on the heels of President Obama’s address to a joint session of Congress on jobs.

On Monday, Sept. 12th, CNN will broadcast the "Tea Party Republican Debate," live from Tampa, Florida at 8 p.m. ET. Follow all the issues and campaign news leading up to the debate on CNNPolitics.com and @cnnpolitics on Twitter.FULL POST

New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) - Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour exhorted Republicans on Friday to put their ideological differences aside and rally around their eventual presidential nominee with the goal of defeating President Barack Obama in 2012.

"We are not going to have a perfect candidate," Barbour told the Republican Leadership Conference in New Orleans. "There has only been one perfect person that has ever walked on this earth and there's not going to be one who runs for president in 2012."FULL POST

Washington (CNN) - Leading Republicans are in Washington Friday and Saturday speaking before the conservative Faith and Freedom Coalition conference. Some highlights from the speeches are below. Read more about the conference here.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour on President Obama's re-election: "Barack Obama has worn out two sets of knee pads down on his knees praying that conservatives will split it up (the 2012 vote) and have some third party candidate. And my hat is off to the tea party people who have said no, we're going to run as Republicans because we understand that's the way to get there."FULL POST

Washington (CNN) - Now that he's officially out of the race for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour is candidly sharing his thoughts on the field of potential candidates.

During an interview with CNN Chief National Correspondent John King Thursday, Barbour said that announced candidate Newt Gingrich was "thoughtful and smart" but appeared to be a "jerk" in the press.FULL POST

Dallas (CNN) - Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, who was on the cusp of a presidential campaign before backing away from a bid last month, said Monday that Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels should join the race for the Republican presidential nomination.

Barbour is a friend and political ally of Daniels, who has remained coy about his presidential intentions despite entreaties from veteran Republican operatives and donors.FULL POST

(CNN) - With his Southern accent, background as a two-term governor and varied political experience, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour thought he might be the perfect candidate to go up against President Barack Obama.

For the past few months he explored whether he might have enough support for a 2012 White House run, road-testing his message in key early-voting states with the kind of stops any presidential wannabe must make.

Washington (CNN) – Haley Barbour's exit from the GOP presidential sweepstakes leaves his endorsement and donors up for grabs. "He's a campaign without a candidate," says GOP strategist Alex Castellanos. And those who know Barbour expect him to take sides in the GOP primary.

"I doubt Barbour will sit on the sidelines for this," one top Republican strategist tells CNN, who points out Barbour didn't endorse anyone in the 2008 presidential primary and later regretted it. This person adds, "Now he's a free agent," but don't expect anything immediate.FULL POST

(CNN) - Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour said Monday he will not run for president in 2012.

"I will not be a candidate for president next year," Barbour, a Republican, said in a statement. "This has been a difficult, personal decision, and I am very grateful to my family for their total support of my going forward, had that been what I decided."FULL POST

The minimally invasive, out-patient surgery at the River Oaks Hospital in Jackson, Mississippi addressed an issue "commonly encountered in active individuals and former athletes," according to a press release from Barbour's office.FULL POST

Charleston, South Carolina (CNN) – Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour won a presidential straw poll in the pivotal early primary state of South Carolina on Friday night.

The straw poll was conducted by the Charleston County Republican Party at its annual convention. Barbour, fresh off a trip to the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire, was the only potential 2012 candidate to address the crowd of nearly 200 GOP activists.FULL POST